CHAPTER ONE

BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

1.1 Introduction

The end of the Cold War witnessed an encroachment by China on Africa with a lot of nations

on the continent opting for closer ties with Beijing for a number of reasons. This foreign

policy development by African states has been described, in geopolitical language, by

international relations pundits as a “look-east policy”. Some of the reasons for the look-east

policy are the rise of China as a competitor to the US an action which is challenging the

‘Washington Consensus’ and giving developing nations an alternative to Western aid and the

notion by African leaders that since China is a developing country this puts her in a better

position to understand the developmental challenges faced by other developing countries.

African nation’s see the look-east policy as a South-South solidarity; as answering the need

for foreign direct investment (FDI) to meet the developmental challenges and infrastructural

needs of African nations. Beijing’s position of non-interference in the domestic affairs of

other nations, and the inspiration China gives to African leaders when they see how China, a

once poor and backward country has risen to become the world’s second economy (China’s

developmental model and soft power), all of these encourage the closer ties with China.

The end of the Cold War changed the international order from a bipolar one into a unipolar

one with the US becoming its sole superpower. With no challenge to American hegemony,

countries on the African continent lost their strategic value and were no longer needed as

proxies. From the standpoint of proxy conflicts, this was a good development as this saw the

cessation of a lot of proxy conflicts on the continent, however from the standpoint of playing

the superpowers off against each other, in their attempt to court African states with aid in

1
exchange for political clout and access to their resources, post-Cold War was a bad period for

nations on the continent.

This era lasted for about a decade 1991-2000 and thereafter Africa began to be strategically

valuable to China, an emerging superpower. Amadausn & Oghoator (2011:85) note that

Africa has become strategically important to China from an economic standpoint. China’s

resurgence coincided with the end of the Cold War as she has naturally filled the vacuum

created after the fall of the Soviet Union. Waltz (cited by Khoo, 2010:3) states that there was

a historic rivalry between Moscow and Beijing for influence during the Cold War. A

weakened Moscow gave Beijing leeway to pursue her global ambitions and it is plausible to

conclude that during the Cold War, China was the only developing country to act like a

superpower, trying to sell her form of communism around the world and give aid to African

states.

Historically China’s engagement with Africa was mainly political. This saw her exporting her

brand of communism and lending moral and material support to liberation movements with

minimal economic support except for a handful of projects like the Tazara railway

construction linking Tanzania and Zambia (Ministry of foreign affairs of the People’s

Republic of China). In modern times the feature China’s political relations with the continent

has changed in the sense that it is not about exporting communism and supporting liberation

movements. Now her political relationship with African states is a quest for political clout

which will advance her national interest, like the ‘One-China’ policy. In exchange for this

desired political clout she gives aid, loans and FDI, which also serve her economic interest of

gaining access to Africa’s rich resources.

China’s rise has altered the political economy of some countries of Africa. These countries
are subtly becoming proxies of China as she gives aid, loans, FDI and finances infrastructural

projects for political clout. Visits by Chinese statesmen to countries on the continent and the

Forum for China Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) summits are drawing Africa and China closer

together and the West is beginning to take notice of this development. After the Cold War,

Western countries, particularly the US, took Africa for granted because she had lost her

strategic value. The China ‘threat’ as the West has come to view a resurgent China has made

them realise that Africa is of strategic value again and cannot forever be ignored. In the wake

of FOCAC, Europe and the USA responded with summits of their own where they sought to

reaffirm their political and economic ties with Africa. Sanders (2015) informs that in 2014

President Obama of the USA hosted African statesmen for the three-day USA-Africa leader’s

summit and La Franchi (2014) writes that in 2014 the fourth Africa-EU partnership summit

brought together over 60 EU and African leaders.

Africa desperately needs Chinese FDI to create jobs for its citizenry and the Chinese market

is a huge one for African products albeit the bulk of her exports to China are natural resources

in their unprocessed form. From the African standpoint the relationship has also had its

challenges like the African market being flooded with cheap Chinese goods which the local

goods cannot compete with. Politically, the relationship has sometimes tarnished Africa’s

image as a global advocate for human rights issues as she has been accused of prioritizing her

national interest above human rights concerns in line with China’s behaviour.

1.2 Statement of the Research Problem

After the Cold War China rose unto the international scene as a political and economic power.

Africa is increasingly becoming important to her which is motivating China to make forays

into Africa. In the context of sub-Saharan Africa, Africa has become one of the greatest

3
partners of China, in terms of political and economic relations. This partnership is further

enhanced by some of African States becoming members of BRICS.

The China-Africa relations possess a strong character, therefore, at a time being multi-

dimensional and multiform. China now stands as a power claiming the position of the first

trading partner of African countries. This problem brings us to the heart of cooperation and

the commercial tendencies between China and the African countries since these last years.

The Chinese presence in Africa is particularly emblematic. Contrary to Europe and to the

United States, China doesn’t condition its aide and its investments to the political criteria

respect.

Driven by its need for energy, China’s increased economic engagements with Africa has led

to a significant evolution in bilateral political, foreign aid, and cultural exchanges. This paper

seeks to examine the dynamics of the rapidly developing Sino-African relationship,

reviewing the history of their interactions before analyzing each of the aforementioned facets

of the connection and considering international criticism of Chinese involvement with the

continent. Ultimately, it will fully explicate the benefits of the relationship for the Chinese as

well as consider the implications of China’s increased engagements with Africa on the

continent’s indigenous populace. Against all this background, the study investigates the Rise

of china in global affairs and multilateralism; a case study of China-Africa relations.

1.3 Research Questions of The Study

i. What is the nature of China’s relationship with Africa?

ii. What are the areas of relationships between China and Africa?

iii. How sustainable are the bilateral relationship between China and Africa?
1.4 Research Objectives of the study

i. To examine the nature of Chinese relationships with Africa.

ii. To explore the areas of relationships between China and Africa.

iii. How sustainable are the bilateral relationship between China and Africa?

1.5 Research Assumptions of The Study

i. The desire for China-Africa relations is because of Africa vast natural resources

which could boost Chinese economic development

ii. Africa has not realized the full potential of its partnership with China since the

relationship has not meaningfully translated into significant development.

iii. The Chinese relationships with Africa post challenges to Africa economic

development.

1.6 Significance of the study

This study aims to contribute to the academic relevance through increasing the knowledge of

the situation regarding Chinese investments in Africa and the potential threats and

opportunities. Furthermore, if possible, this work will create a new foundation where

scientists and other scholars may further the study around this situation as well as creating

new theories through a new lens of understanding by using a new theoretical framework.

Through the practical relevance, this study will enhance the analysis of the function between

relationships that China and the African states engage in. Furthermore, the study will have

practical relevance due to trying to detect potential injustice and unbalanced trade

relationships which could be deteriorating for either of these parts. The study will also have

practical relevance due to its analysis of international affairs on the state level, how and if a

state could potentially not only gain economic beneficiaries but also political influence over

another state.

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1.7 Scope and Limitations of the Study

This study focuses on Chinese and Africa and its possible influence on development of

Africa. A study with such a focus will certainly give just a glimpse on some of the many

possible impacts of Chinese relations on African economic development conditions.

There are many other facets that could be fruitful to investigate, such as a comparison of

Chinese to Africa to the other aids’ donors to countries in the continent, a comparison with

regard to the amount of aid provided to the various beneficiary countries in Africa to name

just a few. But these could be research objects for further investigations. This study is limited

by time and finance.

1.8 Operational Definition of Terms

Multilateralism: refers to a situation in which several distinct countries form a collaboration

with the main aim of providing solutions for problems facing their respective nations.

Rise of China: means that – once again – China plays a pivotal role in international affairs.

China-Africa relations: these are the historical, political, economic, military, social, and

cultural connections between China and the African continent.

1.9 Organisation of Chapters

This study consists of five interrelated chapters. Chapter one includes the introduction,

statement of the research problem, research questions, aims and objectives of the study,

research assumptions, significance of the study, the scope and limitations of the study.

Chapter two consists of literature review and theoretical framework. Chapter three is research

methodology. Chapter four, focuses on data presentation, analyses while chapter five contains

the summary, conclusion and recommendations.

 CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

2.1 Introduction

Academic interest in China keeps growing on the African continent, and this interest is not

limited to academia but there is also interest from governments, the private sector and civil

society. In commencing the literature review for this study, the researcher classified the

process into the following sections: the rise of China, Africa’s economic underdevelopment,

China-Africa relations in the traditional discourse, China-Africa relations in the

contemporary discourse. Also, theoretical framework of the study is discussed here

2.2 The Rise of China

China has a great past and in ancient times her people called her the Middle Kingdom as she

was the dominant power in East Asia. Inventions like the gunpowder, paper, paper money,

printing and the compass originated from the Middle Kingdom and changed the world. China

lost its hegemony status and went through a period of decline but in recent times she is rising

to greatness again. Her economy is booming with no developing nation rivalling the amount

of FDI the Chinese economy has benefitted from and with China home to over a quarter of

the global population, she has a huge labour force which translates into national power

(Fardon 2007:4).

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Fardon (2007) agrees that China is already an economic super power with the world’s second

largest economy that is projected to overtake the United States (US) economy in a few

decades. China is the world’s “factory”, manufacturing goods at a fraction of the costs it will

take to produce the same goods in more developed economies and this has made goods from

developed economies unable to compete with those from China. For emerging economies

with nascent industries, their citizenry now has access to affordable goods from China which

they otherwise would not have been able to afford had the goods originated from more

developed economies. This has resulted in China accruing a huge trade surplus compared to

other countries and the money earned from trade has enabled China which was once just a

destination for FDI to become a major source of FDI.

Her rise has elicited concerns from China pundits especially those from the West who see in

China a challenge to the global economic order. Her rise is a challenge to the Western world

since empirical knowledge shows that a country rising to major power status can cause

economic and security conflicts. The rise of Germany in the 19th century, the rise of the US

in the 19th century and the subsequent rise of Germany in the 20th century validates this

argument.

In China’s economic relations with other countries, she actively pursues strategies that

undermine the norms and the institutional architecture of the global economic order. The

Beijing Consensus has come to be viewed as an alternative to the Washington Consensus and

it does not give rigid prescriptions to developing nations by indicating freeing up markets,

privatization and deregulation but rather China acknowledges the need for different policy

prescriptions for different countries. China’s rise is immediately felt in her neighbourhood,

with authors like Weitz (2011) and Snitwongse (2003) remarking that the power arrangement
in the Asia pacific region is fast evolving. With a strong economy China now has more funds

available for military modernization including her maritime capabilities and Beijing is now

more assertive in her territorial claims in the South China Sea. Weitz (2011) points out that

this 3.5 million-square ocean body contains oil and other minerals, with China, Vietnam,

Malaysia, Brunei, Philippines and Taiwan all claiming that it is part of their EEZ. A case in

point is the Philippines contracting Forum Energy from the United Kingdom to drill for

natural gas in the South China Sea in an area called Reed Bank which China claims is in her

EEZ (Glaser, 2012: 2). Yaqing (2008:34) contends that China’s rapid economic growth

creates an increasing need for energy and resources.

China makes naval patrols in this zone and is actively involved in land reclamation projects

for the purpose of building military bases to protect her claims. Scholars of international

relations use the theory of ‘offensive realism’ to explain this behaviour (Fravel, 2011) and

(Yaqing, 2008). Glaser (2012:1) warns that the potential for conflict in the South China Sea is

real not only between China and her neighbours but also between her and the US because US

naval ships also patrol that body of water. These patrols are part of the US policy to contain

China in the region which the Obama administration aptly named the ‘pivot to the pacific’

(Manyin et al. 2012). US interference in the region is necessitating Beijing to develop

military capabilities to counter, what she considers, US encroachment on her backyard. US

military activities are not restricted to naval patrols only, there are also reconnaissance flights

by US jets which Chinese jets sometimes intercept. Glaser (2012) notes the infamous incident

in 2001 when a Chinese F-8 fighter jet collided with a US EP-3 reconnaissance plane leading

to a diplomatic crisis between the two countries. China’s One-China policy also has the

potential to destabilize the region. Any attempt by Taipei to declare independence will force a

9
military response from Beijing. According to Kan and Morrison (2013:4) the US will be

forced to come to Taiwan’s defence in terms of the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979. It can,

however, be noted that the relationship between Taipei and Beijing has improved in recent

times due to the increasing commercial ties between them. It can also be argued that in

Beijing’s calculations solving the cross-strait issue, militarily, will only backfire because

states in the region will be compelled to draw closer to the US to deter China’s expansion.

China’s rise does not only cause belligerence between her and her neighbours, in the sense

that it is a zero-sum game but can also be argued as a win-win situation for her and her

neighbours in terms of the economic benefits both parties are accruing. Snitwongse (2003:39)

points out that in South East Asia, China is seen as the economic hub of the region, a

distinction that Japan once held and the author alludes to China’s agreement with the

Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to establish a free-trade area (FTA) in

2010. This FTA will invariably bind China economically to ASEAN countries at the expense

of the US and Japan. Salidjanova, Koch-Weser and Klanderman (2015:1) note that the free-

trade area became operational in 2010. Orlik (2015) point out that apart from the FTA with

ASEAN, China has embarked on an economic initiative called ‘One Belt, One Road’

(OBOR) to link her economy with those of her neighbours and beyond, through increased

trade. Orlik (2015) describe OBOR as having two components: One Road being a maritime

silk road from Fujian on China’s coast that goes through the straits of Malacca, the horn of

Africa and ends in Venice and the ‘One Belt’ is an overland course that starts from central

Asia via the Middle East and culminates in Europe. Such interdependence may stop China

from resorting to force in her territorial claims as Keohane and Nye (1987) argue when they

state that the more economically interdependent actors become, the less likely they will use
force to resolve disputes. Based on Keohane and Nye’s argument one may conclude that

China’s naval patrols may be aimed at deterring her neighbours from making territorial

claims and China may stop at actual armed conflict because the economic costs will be too

high for Beijing.

China’s territorial expansion in her neighbourhood may be destabilizing to the region yet she

is on a charm offensive in Africa raising concerns as to whether her intentions in Africa will

continue to be pacific in the long term. Lumumba-Kasongo (2011:237) expresses similar

fears when he says that researchers, governments and policy makers interested in China-

Africa relations need to critically examine the nature of the relationship. He goes on to warn

African states of the dangers of being neo-colonized by China when he states that there are

countries that history has bequeathed a certain vulnerability in their political and economic

systems because of colonialism. Melber (2008:394) also warns that China-Africa trade is not

a deviation from the established negative global trade pattern whereby Africa exports raw

materials and imports expensive manufactured goods.

Other scholars see the China-Africa engagement in a different light. Fijalkowski (2011)

maintains that China’s engagement with Africa presents an opportunity Africa must take

advantage of. Africa can learn from China’s model of economic development and aid,

additionally, FDI from China is helping Africa develop. China’s charm offensive is not only

limited to Africa as she is also on a charm offensive to Latin America. China’s activities in

Latin America mirror the US’s activities in South East Asia, albeit on a smaller scale. China

seeks to counter-balance US power in the region. Dreyer (2006:85) notes that this has caused

considerable worry in the US as policymakers in Washington fear that countries in the region

11
will drift towards China at the expense of the US. Dreyer further states that China sees Latin

America as also a source of raw materials for her industries and a ready market for her

finished products. Chinese official rhetoric in Latin America mirrors the rhetoric in Africa

with the partnership being described as a win-win one (Logan and Bain, 2005).

Just like in Africa, there is also a military aspect to China’s encroachment into Latin America.

Orion (2016:1) points out that China has signed an agreement with Djibouti to construct a

logistics base for the Chinese navy that will be operational for a decade, in line with Beijing’s

ambitions to build a blue water navy. In Latin America there has been an increase in the

training of military officers from the region in Chinese military academies (Horta, 2008).

2.2.1 Africa’s Economic Underdevelopment

Africa is the most underdeveloped and impoverished continent in the world and there are a

host of reasons that have contributed to this state of affairs. The colonization of Africa by

Western powers, the World Bank imposed SAP and globalization are but a few of the reasons

that have contributed to Africa’s present status. Ocheni & Nwankwo (2012:46) explain

colonialism as the direct and complete domination of one nation by another on the basis of

state power being controlled by another power. It is plausible to state that the first aim of

colonialism is political control and afterward economic.

The colonization of Africa was a continuation of the economic relationship between Europe

and Africa which was in the form of the trade that started with the expeditions by the

Portuguese into West Africa in the 15th century. European powers decided to colonize Africa

because they needed raw materials, cheap labour and additional markets for the goods from

the industrial revolution. Ocheni & Nwankwo (2012:46) similarly write that colonialism

started as a result of the industrial revolution and Alemazung (2010:63) that European powers
exploited African resources to develop their economies.

There was also strategic political and military competition among European powers and

colonial Africa was valued strategically. According to Settles (1996) colonialism adversely

affected African’s by changing their modes of thought, cultural development and how

Africans lived through the change in their political structures. This change in their political

structures left a legacy of corruption and instability. Hrituleac (2011) add that Europeans

came with traditions to implement and justify their stay in Africa. African economies were

developing and there was trade between African polities but these were altered when their

economies were restructured and inter-African trade stopped and trade was now between the

colonizing state and the colonized state. Infrastructure set up to foster trade was oriented

towards Europe such as in communication and banking services. A phone call from Accra to

Lagos previously had to be diverted through London thus making communication costs high.

The same reality exists today; a phone call from Johannesburg to London is cheaper than

from Johannesburg to Accra.

African economies were agrarian and encouraged to remain so for the benefit of the

Metropolitan countries in Europe and this presented a problem after independence as it was

impractical for African states to trade with one another as in most case they were producing

the same agrarian goods. Africa is a continent blessed with natural resources and arable land,

however Venables (2010:469) argues that this is a misconception. According to this author,

the continent is not favoured by natural advantage and the arable lands are uneven with some

places susceptible to drought. In addition, the continent’s natural resources are unevenly

distributed and very inadequate for the continent’s developmental needs. Focusing on

Venables’ (2010) term, ‘economic geography’ looks at the impact factors like natural resource

13
endowment, business

environment and market size have on the continent’s development. It can be argued that the

continent is prone to diseases like malaria and the recent Ebola outbreak and other major

diseases have impacted negatively on the continent’s development. When one takes a look at

the map of Africa one can observe that most of the countries are landlocked with no

navigable rivers and this hinders development. Africa also has a low population density in

some places and the continent is divided into small countries which are multination states.

This state of affairs leads to a lot of conflict and wars and not surprisingly Africa has

witnessed a lot of these. Venables’ (2010:469) argument is contentious, with this scholar

contending that if the continent is not rich in natural resources then what motivated the

European powers to scramble for Africa or embark on colonization? Other scholars like

Melber (2010), and Akongbowa and Oghoator (2011) also contend that the continent is rich

in natural resources which is the motivating factor for China’s encroachment upon Africa.

This same motivation drove the Europeans to conquer Africa, centuries ago. Colonialism has

ended but the colonial legacy can still be seen in the form of neo-colonialism which

Alemazung (2010) has aptly termed “Post-Colonial Colonialism.” Colonialism had some

benefits for Africa, however when one looks at the overall picture, one can argue that

colonialism impacted Africa negatively. In post-colonial Africa the societal structure is such

that only the political elite or the politically connected live in affluence while the rest of the

populace live below the poverty line. Tangie (2006) claims that the generation of Africans

born in the post-colonial era condemn the African political elite for the graft that plaques the

continent.

One enduring legacy of colonialism is the ethnic strife on the African continent. Ethnic
rivalry and superiority complex can be seen in all cultures around the world, however the

“divide and rule” tactics employed by the Europeans complicated the relations between the

numerous ethnic groups. In some cases, two sets of people with a long history of ethnic

hostility were put together in a “nation” and this has been the bane of Africa which is evident

in the countless civil wars the continent has witnessed. Bujra (2002) confirms this when he

notes that ethnicity plays a role in civil wars in Africa.

Brawley & Baerg (2007:601) point out that different criteria have been employed to measure

the impact of SAPs on developing economies and there is a general consensus that they do

not improve a country’s balance of payments significantly. SAPs are economic policies

developed in the 1980s as part of international financial institutions (IFIs) assistance to

highly-indebted countries which were asked inter alia to liberalize tariffs, open up their

markets and increase taxes as a way forward (Brawley & Baerg, 2007). One can infer that the

import-substitution policies embarked on by African states led them into a debt trap because

they obtained loans in US dollars for their policies and when the US dollar appreciated the

states could not repay their loans. African states have had SAPs imposed upon them by IFIs

in an effort to help them meet their debt obligations, and regrettably SAPs have failed to

move the balance of payments of African states from negative to positive and where the SAPs

have been hailed a success that success has been short-lived. Konadu-Agyemang (2000:469)

agrees with this point when he states that African countries under the SAP programme may

encounter extraordinary economic growth or they may encounter unbalanced development,

low standard of living, poverty and inaccessibility to basic services. Brawley and Baerg

(2007:601) contend that the reasons for the failure of SAPs are because the economic models

behind the programmes are premised on unrealistic assumptions about the micro-level

15
process of trade adjustment and these micro-level dynamics have affected the domestic

politics of SAPs.

Easterly (2003:362) and Imam (2007) claim that the left in the West blames SAPs for making

the poor poorer. Easterly (2003:362) goes on to state that when the International Monetary

Fund (IMF) and the World Bank arrive in developing countries, the bottom lines of

corporations go up but the poor in those countries do not witness an improvement in their

standard of living. It can be argued that these IFIs therefore protect only the interests of these

corporations.

In Africa the SAPs can be blamed for reversing the economic progress African states

witnessed in the 1960s and 1970s. Easterly (2003:363) points out that SAPs compel

governments to reform the formal sectors of the economy, however indigenous reforms like

what the Chinese embarked on reformed both the formal and informal sectors of the

economy. The seminal work of Baro and Lee (2005) on the SAP, based on the study of all

725 SAPs between 1970-2000 concluded that countries that went on the programme would

have been better off had they not been involved in the programme. Radelet and Sachs (1998)

concur with these findings.

Globalization, according to Akindele (1990) is the process in which political, economic,

social and cultural ties between nations become stronger. Adejo (2003) has also described it

as the incremental integration of national economies into the world economy through trade

and investment, spurred by technological advances. The phenomenon can be traced back to

the period after the Second World War, but close to the turn of the 21st century when the

process was accelerated by technological advances and the liberalization of markets. On the

liberalization of markets Cerry (1994) opines that this has furthered the phenomenon by

increasing investment and interdependence among nations. Globalization has seen mixed

results in developing countries. It can be argued that it has made the economies of East Asian
states grow rapidly, however not all developing countries haveseen this growth. Charlick

(2000) claims that for Africa, globalization has largely been a curse because it has not

benefited the people of Africa, and some of the reasons Tandon (1998) advances for this state

of affairs is that globalization wants to do away with all national barriers to free trade and

international capital. Africa desperately needs to protect her markets and industries from

foreign competition at this stage of her development as a matter of fact European states

protected their markets and industries from one another before the advent of globalization. A

similarly critical view is held by Oyejide (1998) who argues that African states have lost their

economic sovereignty because of globalization. Khor (2000) also opines that national policies

that were under the control of states and people in a country have come under the influence of

international agencies.

Globalization, however has been hailed as a good development by IFIs and Multinational

Corporations (MNCs) because they profit from the laissez faire economic system that is a

hallmark of globalization. A similar critical view is put forward by Okogbule (2008) who

argues that the World Bank is a culprit in this respect. The laissez faire economic system does

not take into account the fact that African economies are monoculture economies which

suffer from such systems. This has led to a clarion call for a new international economic order

that does not marginalize the South. As stated earlier the results of globalization are mixed.

Ibrahim (2013:88) argues that information and communication technological advances which

were necessitated because of globalization and in turn spurred the phenomenon, have made it

easier for Africans to interact with one another and the outside world. The cellular phone has

allowed African economies to leapfrog the development of and application of

communications technology. Communication via cellular phones contribute to the GDP of

Africa. Ibrahim (2013:89) further highlights the fact that one of the ways globalization has

17
impacted positively on Africa is that it has made it easier for African people to see how

people in other parts of the world are governed.

2.3 Historical China-Africa Relation

The historical engagement between China and Africa before the founding of the People’s

Republic of China. As H. E. Sun Baohong (Chinese Ambassador to Ghana) pointed out in

her speech at Ashesi University, history is one of the most important factors that guide

formation of international relationship and therefore, it is important to draw wisdom from

history in order to understand the current engagement between China and Africa. According

to Felesi, China’s engagement with Africa can be traced back to time not less remote than

first migrants moved from Malaysia to Madagascar (Felesi, 1972). From second to third

century AD, China has already established trading relationship with the Egypt Empire by

land for trading copper, gold, camel, silk and many other exotic materials (Felesi, 1972).

Zhang (2011), states that “China and Africa have a long flowing relationship over 2000

years”. Even though the historical engagement between China and Africa has disappeared in

the course of history, the impacts of the Chinese still reflects in historical literature like that

of China and Africa in the Middle Ages by Felesi. When China started exploring the rest of

the world with its fleets, it fostered good relationship with many kingdoms of that era around

the Middle East and eastern part of Africa (Felesi, 1972). Pelliot consider it is possible that

China reached Egypt in the Han Dynasty by the overland route, and reached a city “Wu-Chi

San” mentioned in the Wei L&e or Wei Lio (a chronicle of state of Wei, one of the three

kingdoms dated AD 239 to 265). Since China’s Confucius view emphasize on drawing

wisdom from history, historical engagement is most likely to be cited in official speech such
as the one President Xi delivered at Julius Nyerere Center in Tanzania.

During the Ming dynasty, Admiral Zheng He sailed his fleet to the coast of Eastern Africa

with the aim of facilitating peaceful diplomatic and trade relationship with foreign countries

(Menzies, 2002). This was the prelude of the 600 years of China-Africa formal relation.

Emperor Zhu Di of Ming dynasty launched seven voyages led by Admiral Zheng He to

explore the Middle East and Eastern Africa, with over 400 fleets, accompanied by water

supply ship, warships with canons and patrol ships which accommodated over 28,000

people. The Chinese armada never sought to establish colonial rule over these territory by

military force but rather to form a cordial and mutual relationship with the indigene (Yang,

2014).

There were several achievements made by this expansive voyage; the Chinese Emperor Zhu

Di displayed the military power of Ming Dynasty, found new partners to trade spices, exotic

wood and local medicine, and a facilitated a new world order guided by peace and harmony

(Yang, 2014). A “Pax Sinica” was maintained across few decades of the sail. The fact that

China did not impose any colonial rule but peaceful co-existence with the locals oversea

during Ming era is one of the key arguments put forward by scholars such as Zhang (2011),

Li (2014), Felesi (1972) among others. The argument that China did not form any colonial

territory oversea at that time, try to colonize Africa in contemporary times becomes difficult

to sustain.

2.3.1 Traditional China-Africa Relations

Obiorah (2007:35) reports that traditional Chinese engagement with the African continent

started in the aftermath of the communist revolution of 1949 when the Chinese lent support to

19
African liberation movements in their struggle against colonialism. Abdenur et al. (2014:306)

mention Angola as one of countries that received help from the Chinese during their

liberation struggle. China also supported Zimbabwe’s African National Union-Patriotic Front

(ZANU-PF) in the 1960s which laid the foundation for the current Sino-Zimbabwe ties

(Chun, 2014:5). Shelton (2012:9) writes that in 1963 the African National Congress (ANC)

president Oliver Tambo visited Beijing, however the Sino-Soviet split saw the Chinese

Communist Party (CCP) forging closer ties with the Pan African Congress (PAC). Lumumba-

Kasongo (2011:242) is more specific when he states that this traditional China-Africa

engagement was forged at the Bandung Conference in Indonesia in 1955. At the conference

an affinity developed between both parties as both saw each other as belonging to the South

with a common history of colonialism. Cao (2014:1) informs that the attendees at the

conference were diverse in terms of their ideological commitments, forms of government and

cultural backgrounds as participants originated from diverse places such as communist China,

India, Saudi Arabia to colonial Africa. Cao (2014:3) further narrates that China, an invited

attendee was one of the most important countries at the conference owing to its status as the

attendee with the largest territory, population and economic potential, however she was

viewed with suspicion because she was suspected of being a member of the Eastern bloc.

Chinese delegation however sought to allay these fears as China desperately needed the

goodwill of the attendees in an effort to find more allies because of her diplomatic isolation

from the West. Building on the ties forged at Bandung, between 1963 and 1964 the Chinese

leader Zhou Enlai, visited 10 African countries and announced China’s “Eight Principles of

Foreign Economic and Technological Assistance” which was to guide China’s foreign policy
towards Africa (Sun, 2014:4). During that period the context of Sino-African engagement

was different from the context it finds itself today. Suzuki (2013) agrees when he writes that

China was not strong economically as it is today and so the engagement was more political

than economic. Kanza (1975) contends that the country was involved in diplomatic feuds

with the US and the Soviet Union and needed diplomatic support from the South. Khoo

(2010:1) traces the origins of the Sino-Soviet split to the “secret speech” given by Nikita

Khruschev, the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) during

the Twentieth Congress held in February 1956 which the Chinese Communist Party labelled a

“serious error”. China got diplomatic support from Africa by supporting African liberation

movements whose countries in turn lent her political support upon gaining independence. An

example of this is the crucial role African states played in getting China to replace Taiwan at

the United Nations. Ogunsanwo (cited by Suzuki, 2013:101) and Amanor (2013) agree that

China embarked on aid projects which the two superpowers did not consider economically

viable. This was done in an effort to undermine the two superpowers by presenting China as

different from the two since she was also a developing nation who appreciated the

developmental needs of the African states. An example, of this is the Tazara railway project

that linked Tanzania with Zambia which China embarked on despite the fact that China’s

citizenry also needed railway infrastructure. China’s traditional engagement with Africa

stopped in the 1980s because Beijing had to focus her attention on economic reforms and she

did not have an appetite for grandiose foreign policy initiatives due to financial constraints

(Suzuki, 2013) and Lumumba-Kasongo (2011).

2.3 Contemporary China-Africa Relations

21
2.3.1 China-Africa Economic Relations

The year 2000 and beyond ushered in an era of increased economic engagement between

China and Africa. Lumumba-Kasongo (2011:243) notes this when he writes that between

2001 and 2010, China has encroached upon quite a few sectors of the African economy. This

encroachment is mainly into Africa’s natural resources industry especially, the crude oil

industry. Melber (2008:394) writes that in 2006, oil and gas made up 62% of Africa’s exports

to China while other minerals made up 13%. China is developing at a fast rate and she is

poised to overtake the US as the world’s number one economy in the not too distant future

therefore her foreign policy decision-making process takes into cognizance the need to gain

access to natural resources, especially, energy resources. Zweig and Jianhai (2005:26) have

hence labelled her foreign policy a “resource-based” foreign policy. China’s economic

engagement with Africa is informed by the spirit of south-south cooperation.

There has been a longstanding southern activism in International Relations in which the

countries of the South want their marginalization in the global political economy to end. The

cords that bind the nations of the South are a shared history of colonization and common

developmental needs. However, Landsberg (2010:7) contend that south-south solidarity or

cooperation is too vague a term to define third world countries who have suffered

colonization and are marginalized by the West. Cooperation between China and Africa can be

seen in the form of capital flows and trade and this cooperation is threatening the historical

ties between the West and Africa.

Cooperation between emerging economies like China and Africa is mainly in the economic
sphere and while this has created diversified sources of aid and trade partners, Amanor

(2013:20) highlights the fact that detractors of the West are quick to condemn such

relationships, saying that China puts commercial concerns above good governance within the

framework of market liberalization. Lumumba-Kasongo (2011) also notes this condemnation

of the West when he writes that these countries have been experienced competition from

China in Africa and media, scholars and civil societies have labelled the China-Africa

economic engagement a new form of colonialism.

Trade between China and Africa is skewed in favour of China: Africa produces raw materials

in exchange for manufactured goods from China. Melber (2008) contends that international

trade patterns have not changed in spite of new actors. Nayyar (2008) affirms Melber’s

(2008) contention when he writes that Sino-Africa trade will not change the international

division of labour; it will instead maintain the status quo that sees developing countries

exporting only primary commodities. Melber (2008) further justifies this with statistics. In the

year 2006, oil and gas comprised 62% of Africa’s exports to China and minerals made up

13%, however Africa imported manufactured products and machinery from China which

accounted for 71% of African imports. During the period 2011-2012 China’s imports from

Africa were mineral products 55%, base metals 4%, and precious stones and metals 3%

(TRALAC). This picture affirms China’s new status as an export-oriented industrial power

assimilated into the global economic system. Southall and Melber (2009) have labelled

China’s encroachment into the continent a “new scramble” different from the old scramble

for Africa.

23
In this new scramble for Africa, great powers are competing for Africa geopolitically and

strategically. According to Gil (2014) and Schneidman (2015), Europe and the US have

responded to successive FOCAC summits with summits of their own; FOCAC therefore is a

geopolitical platform that enhances cooperation between China and Africa. Wekesa (2015:1)

agrees that FOCAC has a strong element of international politics that bring Africa and China

together and when both parties engage on the FOCAC platform, China, normally announces

loan deals, infrastructure projects and writes off debts.

As highlighted earlier in this section, China’s encroachment on Africa is driven by her need

for Africa’s natural resources and crude oil. This has spurred her to conduct robust trade with

the African continent. According to Amanor (2013) in the period 2000 to 2008 China’s trade

with the continent increased by 33.5% and in the year 2009 China became Africa’s largest

trading partner surpassing the US.

The US and China are home to the world’s largest and second largest economies respectively

and there is considerable trade between the two countries. China has enjoyed a trade surplus

with the US in recent times but in the post-recession US economy, policy makers have sought

to stimulate the country’s manufacturing base and this is forcing Beijing to diversify her trade

partners and has found such partners in Africa (Amanor 2013).

China’s development aid given to Africa is another way China engages with Africa

economically. Brautigam (2009) states that Chinese aid to Africa is recognisable in five

forms: grants and zero interest loans, concessional loans, export-buyers credit, loans at

commercial rates and strategic lines of credit. One hallmark of Chinese aid is that it is not as

prescriptive as western aid and this appeals to Africa’s political elites. Alden, Large and
Oliveira (2008) state that another hallmark of Chinese aid is that it is handed out on a stated

basis of “equality and mutual benefit”. Enehikhuere (2015) also contends that in disbursing

foreign aid China places a high premium in bettering the standard of living of African people.

2.4 China-Africa Political Relations

China needs good political relations with Africa in order to advance her economic agenda

hence can after African states helped China replace Taiwan in the UN, political ties between

China and Africa has been steadily forged by both parties. In the aftermath of the Tiananmen

Square massacre of 1989, African states gave political support to an internationally isolated

Beijing. In the spirit of South-South cooperation, China is casting herself as a voice for the

global South. This role fits China as she has the world’s second largest economy and is also a

member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). Africa is strategically important

when it comes to China’s rivalry with Japan and the issue of Taiwan. China has repeatedly

lobbied African states successfully and garnered their votes in opposing Japan’s UNSC

ambitions (Alden, Large and Oliveira 2008:5). On the issue of Taiwan, a lot of African states

have severed relations with the former on China’s insistence.

As a matter of fact, China’s “no-strings attached” policy and aid has one caveat: the cessation

of diplomatic ties with Taiwan and an endorsement of her One-China policy. Beijing’s One-

China policy has been a success in Africa with only a handful of African states still

maintaining diplomatic ties with Taipei. Beijing’s policy seeks to totally isolate Taipei on the

African continent and to further this objective China has gone as far as courting the handful

of Taiwan-recognising African states by inviting them to FOCAC 3 (Alden, Large and

Oliveira 2008:5). China is also busy subverting the global political-economic order

25
established by the US called the ‘Washington Consensus’ and replacing it with what has been

labelled the ‘Beijing Consensus’. The Beijing Consensus is based on the assumption that

China can provide an alternative economic model for advancement for developing countries

(Turin, 2010). This argument appeals to African leaders and increases China’s soft power on

the African continent. Soft power plays an important role in the political aspect of bilateral

relations because it is the ability to get another actor to bend to your will without the

instrument of coercion or monetary inducements. Nye (2009) states that soft power is the

ability to obtain preferred outcomes through attraction.

The historical fact that China did not embark on any colonial project on the African continent

gives her an element of credibility in the eyes of African leaders when she claims that she is

an honest partner for a “win-win” cooperation. This credibility attracts African leaders to

China and it is the soft power used by the country. A lot of African leaders are adopting a

“look east” policy and forging closer ties which China at the expense of the west. Li and

Worm (2010) note that the soft power concept recently entered into the official People’s

Republic of China (PRC) discourse. Kurlantzick (2007) explains that soft power can be

“high”, aimed at political elites and “low”, aimed at the general public. Apart from China’s

appeal to Africa’s leadership, China is working hard to promote her culture on the African

continent and give ordinary Africans a better understanding of China via beaming her satellite

channel China Central Television (CCTV) to homes on the continent which is an example

“low” soft power.

2.5 Gap in the Literature

There are various scholars that have examined various studies on the rise of China in Global
Affairs and Multilateralism: a case study of China-Africa relations, ranging from positive and

negative impacts of the relationship on Africa, most especially from the United States and a

host of European countries that have been quite too supportive with their relationship which

have affected our social, economic and technological development. However little or no

much studies, have been done to examine the Impact of Chinese Aids to Africa’s Economic

Development, which ushered in an era of Africa and China Economic Relations.

Nonetheless, the studies in our literature left a gap, which this study tries to fill up by using

the Dependency Theory of Underdevelopment to drive home its major contention on the

Impacts of Chinese Foreign Aid on Nigeria’s Economic Development.

2.5.1 Theoretical Framework

The international-dependence models, comprising the main streams, the neo-colonial

dependence approach, the false-paradigm approach, and the dualistic-development approach,

have strongly criticized the nature of the relationship between the world’s poor countries and

the rich ones (including their sponsored institutions). The relationship between these two

groups is characterized by dependence and dominance, with poor countries reduced to

perpetual subordinates of rich countries’ (Todaro & Smith, 2006:115-118). This relationship

has over the years resulted in the political and economic exploitation of the poor countries by

the rich ones. According to the neo-colonial dependence approach, the grossly skewed

resource distribution and, by extension, the unequal power relationship between the rich

developed countries and their poor developing counterparts have over several decades

promoted foreign aid, weakening attempts by the later at achieving self-reliance and

especially economic independence (Griffin & Gurley, 1985; Todaro & Smith, 2006:115). This

27
approach argues that often the main beneficiaries of foreign aid (categorised as an unearned

income (Grabowski, 2006)) to poor countries comprise a small band of the ruling class

whose activities and policies not only defy accountability but also obstruct any radical reform

efforts that could tamper with their power base or benefit ordinary citizens. Aid donors as

external forces, on the other hand, have special interests that are often both political and

economic in the aid-recipient countries. Usually some donors, in collaboration with members

of the ruling elite (forces from within) in the recipient countries, choose to ignore the fact that

aid packages, especially financial aid, are not often used for their intended purposes. The neo-

colonial dependence approach therefore views dependency on foreign aid rather as a form of

political and economic control of poor developing countries by their rich developed

counterparts, assisted by forces from within the poor countries. A condition of dependency is

therefore perpetuated in the poor developing countries, trapping these countries in more

serious conditions of backwardness, making them vulnerable to exploitation (Dos Santos,

1973).

The false-paradigm approach sees underdevelopment and poverty and, by extension, the

dependency syndrome in the poor countries as the result of an often-misleading a-single-

prescription-fits-all doctrine, usually adopted for poor developing countries by naïve and

assuming international experts employed by own donor countries, multinational donor

organisations, and intergovernmental institutions. Especially in times of crises in developing

countries, these experts recommend outmoded and inappropriate policies based on strange, if

curious, mixture of ideology and poor economics that, at best, protect special interests but

neglect the effects on the general population in the countries for which the policies are meant
(Stiglitz, 2002: xii-xiv). Projects undertaken by these poor countries fail because of, among

others, wrong policies based on wrong doctrines and inappropriate models (Todaro and

Smith, 2006:117). The policies may, though, serve the interest of an opportunistic few

belongings to the ruling elite that controls their countries’ meagre resources, including donor

aid packages. The failure of policies based on wrong advice usually exacerbates poor

developing countries’ aid dependency, deepening their debts and debt-servicing problems.

Finally, the dualistic-development approach argues that the co-existence of industrialized

developed countries and poor developing countries has become so entrenched, reinforcing in

itself with the former getting only richer and the later only poorer.

This co-existence of unequal partners, both politically and economically, with minimal hope

of a breakthrough for the poor countries, renders any attempts by these countries to cut loose

their foreign aid dependency trap an uphill battle. Dependency and poverty among

developing countries therefore reinforce and exacerbate a cycle of dependency, the situation

in Africa providing a good example. Even though these theoretical facts are often ignored by

foreign aid proponents they nonetheless remain an important basis for criticisms against the

continent’s chronic dependency on foreign aid.

The emphasis on foreign aid to promote growth in Africa builds on the neoclassical view of

the savings-growth causality, which argues that high savings will, through high investment,

lead to growth. Theoretical support for this causal direction from savings to growth via

investment builds on the Harrod-Domar model, which demonstrates that the more an

economy is able to save and invest from a given gross national product (GNP), with total

savings being equal to total investment, the greater will be the growth rate of that GNP. More

29
specifically, the model means that a growth-promoting total new investment is determined by

the level of total saving. Incorporating aid into the model, and in line with aid proponents, it

would mean that should saving be unavailable or in short supply for investment, foreign aid

should then serve as a substitute or a complement. The argument, by implication, would mean

that foreign aid is, to a large extent, as good as saving and can therefore play the role of

saving to determine investment and subsequently growth.

Foreign aid should fill the financing gap between actual national saving and the necessary

investment for a country’s take-off into self-sustained growth (Rostow, 1960:37). A great

emphasis is put on savings and investment, both of which are lacking in poor developing

countries but which aid proponents argue can nevertheless be achieved through either foreign

aid or, according to Todaro and Smith (2006:107), private foreign investment. This theory has

received criticisms, not only for its rigid saving-investment-growth approach, giving little or

no consideration to several important factors (Branson, 1989:574), but also for the very poor

success rate in developing countries for which the application of the aid-investment-growth

approach (considered an alternative to saving-investment-growth approach) is frequently

encouraged (Easterly, 2002:29). Critics argue that saving (whether or not with foreign aid as

substitute or complement) and investment may be a necessary condition for economic growth

but not a sufficient condition (Meier, 1995:153).

Critics are also uncomfortable with the implicit assumption that the necessary structural,

institutional, and attitudinal conditions exist in the developing countries, whereas the reality

is that these conditions are absent in these regions. The model also does not take into

consideration the effects of external forces, often reinforced by forces from within the aid
recipient countries.

The combined effects of both forces are often beyond the control of poor countries to the

extent that they are capable of disadvantaging good development projects by diverting

resources to unintended purposes. The assumptions that foreign aid is a sufficient condition

for investment and ultimately growth, even for developing economies, are therefore

considered as rather too simplistic.

2.5.2 Basic Proponents of Dependency Theory

Dependency theory originates with two papers published in 1949 – one by Hans Singer, one

by Raúl Prebisch – in which the authors observe that the terms of trade for underdeveloped

countries relative to the developed countries had deteriorated over time: the underdeveloped

countries were able to purchase fewer and fewer manufactured goods from the developed

countries in exchange for a given quantity of their raw materials exports. This idea is known

as the Prebisch–Singer thesis. Prebisch, an Argentine economist at the United Nations

Commission for Latin America (UNCLA), went on to conclude that the underdeveloped

nations must employ some degree of protectionism in trade if they were to enter a self-

sustaining development path. He argued

that import-substitution industrialization (ISI), not a trade-and-export orientation, was the

best strategy for underdeveloped countries The theory was developed from a Marxian

perspective by Paul A. Baran in 1957 with the publication of his The Political Economy of

Growth.[4] Dependency theory shares many points with earlier, Marxist, theories of

imperialism by Rosa Luxemburg and Vladimir Lenin, and has attracted continued interest

from Marxists. Matias Vernengo,] a Bucknell University economist, identifies two main

31
streams in dependency theory: the Latin American Structuralist, typified by the work of

Prebisch, Celso Furtado, and Aníbal Pinto at the United Nations Economic Commission for

Latin America (ECLAC, or, in Spanish, CEPAL); and the American Marxist, developed by

Paul A. Baran, Paul Sweezy, and Andre Gunder Frank.

Using the Latin American dependency model, the Guyanese Marxist historian Walter Rodney,

in his book How Europe Underdeveloped Africa, described in 1972 an Africa that had been

consciously exploited by European imperialists, leading directly to the modern

underdevelopment of most of the continent.

The theory was popular in the 1960s and 1970s as a criticism of modernization theory, which

was falling increasingly out of favor because of continued widespread poverty in much of the

world.

It was used to explain the causes of over urbanization, a theory that urbanization rates

outpaced industrial growth in several developing countries.

According to Vernengo, the Latin American Structuralist and the American Marxist schools

had significant differences but agreed on some basic points:

Both groups would agree that at the core of the dependency relation between center and

periphery lays [lies] the inability of the periphery to develop an autonomous and dynamic

process of technological innovation. Technology – the Promethean force unleashed by the

Industrial Revolution – is at the center of stage. The Center countries controlled the

technology and the systems for generating technology. Foreign capital could not solve the

problem, since it only led to limited transmission of technology, but not the process of

innovation itself.
Baran and others frequently spoke of the international division of labour – skilled workers in

the center; unskilled in the periphery – when discussing key features of dependency.

2.5.3 The Basic Premises of the Dependency Theory

Dependency theory is the notion that resources flow from a "periphery" of poor and

underdeveloped states to a "core" of wealthy states, enriching the latter at the expense of the

former. It is a central contention of dependency theory that poor states are impoverished and

rich ones enriched by the way poor states are integrated into the "world system"

The theory arose as a reaction to modernization theory, an earlier theory of development

which held that all societies progress through similar stages of development, that today's

underdeveloped areas are thus in a similar situation to that of today's developed areas at some

time in the past, and that, therefore, the task of helping the underdeveloped areas out of

poverty is to accelerate them along this supposed common path of development, by various

means such as investment, technology transfers, and closer integration into the world market.

Dependency theory rejected this view, arguing that underdeveloped countries are not merely

primitive versions of developed countries, but have unique features and structures of their

own; and, importantly, are in the situation of being the weaker members in a world market

economy.

Dependency theory no longer has many proponents as an overall theory, but some writers

have argued for its continuing relevance as a conceptual orientation to the global division of

wealth.

2.5.4 The Relevant Aspects of the Dependency Theory

China has for some decades now become one of the primary markets for natural resources

33
and raw materials from Africa and specifically Nigeria (Margaret and Qi 2011). However, the

dependency theory got from Karl Marx work and pinpointed that the fact that the persistence

of poverty in the low-income countries is a direct reflection of their being economically or

politically dependency on the wealthy nations. So, their poverty is attributed to powerful

countries exploitation (Margaret and Howard 2006).

Nevertheless, in the case in this investigation, Africa depends on China amongst other

wealthy nations for the exportation of its raw material to make some revenue for its economic

development. But Chinese manufactured products dominate the African markets specifically

Nigerian markets thus instead remove back the little they have paid to them for their raw

materials to their economy (Margaret and Qi 2011).

Also, the dependency theory focused on the above view as one of the reasons why the low-

income persistently stay in poverty. Again, the dependency theory further stipulated that the

above situation do occur as a result of the LDCs depending on the economically and

advanced technologically wealthy nations. Africa have development challenges for instance a

huge financing gap, which they want to meet in order to improve their economic

development especially infrastructure development and investment. But on their own little or

nothing can be done in this respect, what they can only do is to turn to the wealthy nations for

development aid assistance or to willing accept any assistance rendered to them by the

wealthy nations (Vivien). Again, all the above negotiations are done at the expense of

exploitative conditions attached to the aid (Van, 2009).

However, China needs raw materials for its factories, and at the same time China needs a

larger market for its manufactured products. Consequently, China’s entrance into the aid
system could be seen as a way to its economic ambitions amongst others.

Also, unlike china other traditional aid donors to Africa per se did in the past have to

scramble for colonies in Africa as well to achieve raw materials, markets so as to meet the

growing demands from their factories as a result of the industrial revolution. Nevertheless, in

Chinese economic relations with Africa through infrastructure development aid assistance

and investment, in Africa could be an example. Likewise, this could be explained as follows:

China's development aid and FDI could be for the reason that China obtains raw materials

provided by their (Africans) market and reaps huge profits from finished products by its

companies and factories, which are in turn flooded into African markets (Sanusha et al,

2010). In addition, the dependency theory postulated that the dependency of the poor

countries is increasing because majority of them are deeply in debt to the major industrial

countries. So, what these poor countries could do is to follow the economic edicts of the rich

countries because they (rich countries) loaned to them (poor countries). For example,

concessional loans by Chinese banks like the China Exim Bank (Jiyiragira and Abbas 2009).

2.5.5 Strengths of Dependency Theory

All these points of criticism of the dependency theory must not make us overlook its

importance. It must be praised not only for bringing to light the weaknesses of the theories of

development and under-development but also for its emphasis on the analysis of both the

historical process and socio-economic politico-cultural factors of development and

underdevelopment.

It has done well to point out the weaknesses and biases of the continuum model of

development, particularly as put forward by the structural functionalists. Undoubtedly, the

35
Dependency Theory has not been fully successful to objectively analyze the nature, scope and

reasons of under-development as well as the possible remedies for overcoming or

overthrowing the status of dependency.

However, at the same time, it must be noted that it has been successful in identifying and

describing the symptoms and evil effects of under-development. It provides a set of

descriptive characteristics of dependence as well as its causal connections.

No one can deny the existence of dependency within the prevailing and ever-increasing

interdependence in contemporary international relations. As such no one can or should ignore

the ideas put forward by the dependency theorists for mitigating the evil of dependency of the

Third World upon the developed world. It rightly focuses attention upon the need to eliminate

the evil results (Neo-Colonialism and Hegemony) of the expanding world capitalist system.
 CHAPTER THREE

METHODOLOGY

3.0 Introduction

This chapter comprises the Research Design, Study Area, Sampling Procedure, Sources of

Data, Methods of Data Collection, Validity and Reliability of the Instruments, Ethical

Consideration and Method of Data Presentation and Analysis.

3.1 Research Design

A design has been defined as a plan or structure of any aspect of the research procedure, such

a plan will be realized in the selection of the most appropriate concepts, hypothesis, analytical

paradigms, specific sampling techniques instruments and tools of data collection, test for the

hypothesis and also the most effective format to present research report (Anikpo 1986).

Accordingly, a research design is the structuring of investigation aimed at identifying

variables and their relationship on one another (Asika 1991). This study adopted the expose

facto research design, due to the fact that there were no experiments involved in this study. In

addition, the expose facto research design is adopted in this study because the facts observed

in this study involve events that have taken place already; it gives clear explanations

Proliferation of small arms and light weapons and its challenge to national security in

Nigeria.

Expose facto research design is based on events that have taken place and that data are

already in existence, it is therefore, a systematic, empirical study in which the researcher does

not in any way control or manipulate independent variables because the situation for study

already exists or has already taken place (Asika, 1991).

3.2 Study Area

37
The study area is located in Africa. Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most

populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including

adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surface area. With 1.4

billion people as of 2021, it accounts for about 18% of the world's human population. Africa's

population is the youngest amongst all the continents; the median age in 2012 was 19.7, when

the worldwide median age was 30.4. Despite a wide range of natural resources, Africa is the

least wealthy continent per capita and second-least wealthy by total wealth, ahead of Oceania.

Scholars have attributed this to different factors including geography, climate, tribalism,

colonialism, the Cold War, neocolonialism, lack of democracy, and corruption. Despite this low

concentration of wealth, recent economic expansion and the large and young population make

Africa an important economic market in the broader global context.

3.3 Source of Data

The sources of Data are Secondary Data which consists of materials from various academic

journals articles on the Rise of China in the Global Affairs and Multilateralism: a case study of

China-Africa relations. The data from secondary source was collected by reviewing relevant

scholarly literature related to the subject matter which includes the concepts of foreign Aid and

economic development in Africa.

3.4 Methods of Data Collection

The study would collect data through qualitative method or descriptive method of secondary

data collection on available literatures on articles, journals and books.

According to Coten and Manion (1980) method refers to the range of approach used in

research to gather data which are to be used as a basis for inference and interpretation, for
explanation and prediction. However, the word method can be referred to as those techniques

associated with the scientific model such as eliciting responses to predetermined questions,

recording measurements, describing phenomena and performing experiments (Obasi 1999).

For the purpose of this study, the method of data collection employed is qualitative method.

The qualitative method of data collection mainly involves the use of secondary sources of

data, this is because, secondary sources of data involve the use of existing data collected for

the purposes of prior study in other to pursue a research interest which is distinct from that of

the original work, this may be a new research question or an alternative perspective on the

original question (Szabo and Strang 1997). Basically, secondary sources of data include data

that has already been collected and recorded by someone else and readily available from

other sources like the internet, textbooks, magazines, journals etc. (Johnston 2014). The

secondary sources of data employed in this work include information from textbooks, journal,

magazines, internet materials, seminars, debates and seminar publications.

3.5 Validity and Reliability of the Instruments

The validity of the research instrument is mainly relevant text of the study which addresses the

research questions earlier raised by the researcher.

The reliability of the instrument would be tested to ensure it produces uniformity, to all the

available relevant text of the study and the earlier tested research assumption, shall be properly

tested, to provide the findings of the study.

3.6 Ethical Consideration

The ethical consideration of the study is ensuring that the prevailing culture and the tradition of

the people in those areas are not violated in the course of administering interviews by raising

39
oral questions that doesn’t desecrate the existing cultural and traditional beliefs of the people

where such foreign aids have been giving or cited in Africa.

3.7 Method of Data Presentation and Analysis

The study adopts a thematic based pattern of Data Presentation which is orderly presented in

themes addressing the research questions of the study.

The Method of Analysis to be adopted is the Descriptive Mode of Data Analysis, in other

words, the study adopts the use of Content Analysis of the Secondary Data that shall be

collected.

Reference

Abdenur, A.E., Folly, M., Moura, K., Jordão, S.A. and Maia, P., 2014. The BRICS and the
South Atlantic: Emerging arena for South–South cooperation. South African Journal of
International Affairs, 21(3), pp.303-319.

Adejo, A.M., 2003. The roots of globalization: An historical review. Journal of Globalization,
pp. 44-46

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